By Rocky Bru
Journalist Haresh Deol has said the police’s investigation into his assault is still not over as another suspect remains at large. – Scoop file pic
The RM2,000 fine imposed on a man who assaulted journalist Haresh Deol sends a chilling message: in Malaysia, violence against journalists can be cheap, consequence-light, and dangerously normalised
ON November 25 last year, journalist Haresh Deol was beaten up in broad daylight by three individuals.
The incident sent a chill down our spine.
When people start physically attacking journalists to silence them, something is rotten in our democracy.
Even Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim condemned the attack on Haresh.
The police made one swift arrest — which was commendable — but a senior cop made a peculiar remark that the attack was “personal”.
That claim was never repeated, nor was it backed up with any credible evidence.
Yesterday, after nearly two months, a magistrate sentenced the sole culprit apprehended by police to a RM2,000 fine.
No jail time.
The other two suspects were never brought to justice.
The message, if you ask me, is painfully clear:
if you’re unhappy with what a journalist writes, don’t bother responding, offering your side of the story, or engaging a PR firm to set the record straight. Just hire some goons to beat up the journalist, record the attack, and make it look like a case of mistaken identity.
The life of a journalist is that cheap.
Deliveryman R. Krishnan was fined RM2,000 by a magistrate’s court yesterday for assaulting journalist Haresh Deol in November 2022.
R. Krishnan, on November 28, pleaded guilty to attacking sports journalist Haresh Deol.
Krishnan, along with another suspect still at large, committed the offence outside the Tanjung Balai Group premises at Jalan Telawi 3.
The charge was framed under Section 323 of the Penal Code for voluntarily causing hurt, which carries a jail term of up to one year, a fine of up to RM2,000, or both, upon conviction.
The 37-year-old was fined RM2,000 by Magistrate Aina Azahra Arifin.
Meanwhile, Haresh said the case was not over, as another suspect remained at large and investigations were ongoing.
“I will leave it to the police. If they call me again after the other suspect is arrested, I will cooperate,” he said.
Haresh, a senior journalist and co-founder of the *Twentytwo13* news website, has previously rejected police claims that the attack was motivated by a “personal issue
Datuk Ahirudin Attan known as Rocky Bru is the Executive Director of Big Boom Media that publishes Scoop.my.
This article was first published in Rocky Bru’s blog.
